Garri Saganenko’s Sept. 27 letter to the Gazette seems to express the wish that we build a wall around the Island and that the airport commission’s ongoing efforts to address obvious operational problems with the current terminal building are going to bring about the apocalypse.

The suggestion that my statements about insuring safety and security are “perfunctory appeals” is insulting. It is the primary mission of the airport commission, management and staff to provide safety, security and a modicum of comfort for travelers at the airport. All three of these areas need our continuing attention despite what we have already achieved in the three years I have been a commissioner. We have and are working closely with the FAA, MassDOT, TSA, and local law enforcement and fire departments to insure the airport meets and exceeds the highest standards.

I was surprised to learn that our efforts to make the terminal a more pleasant experience for the traveling public would lead directly to an invasion of McDonalds and Chili’s. A more pleasant place in this case means having a sufficiently large gate waiting area not subject to unpleasant weather conditions, with access to restrooms and simple refreshments. Comfort means shorter waiting times through the single TSA checkpoint that currently causes travelers to miss their flights; it means less confusion picking up checked luggage. Safety means an orderly dropoff and pickup arrangement coming to and leaving the airport. 

These are the areas the airport commission is concerned with and will be concerned with for the foreseeable future. To the extent that achieving these goals requires alterations to the existing building, or even an addition to the building, we will pursue the options with public input and the approval of all the relevant authorities: local, state, and federal.

A major expansion of the airport terminal for the sake of making it larger with the intention of attracting more flights, and more travelers is just not the goal. That is an unfortunate misunderstanding of the airport’s needs, which derive from the airlines enlarging their planes, compressing their arrival and departure schedules, and the security requirements post 9/11. 

This is a resort destination, and many living here year-round depend heavily on visitors for their livelihood. The tension between tourism and local charm is an ongoing and necessary discussion, but they are not mutually exclusive.

Robert Rosenbaum

Chilmark

The writer is chairman of the Martha’s Vineyard Airport Commission.